Which to use
“sauf” is an adjective and “sum” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #661
- “sauf” frequency rank
- #30,825
- “sum” frequency rank
- 31486
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | sauf | sum |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Qui n’a pas reçu d’atteinte, qui a échappé au péril. | Unité monétaire utilisée en Ouzbékistan |
Where the eye mixes sauf and sum
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses sauf with sum
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: sauf is \sof\ while sum is \sum\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 31486, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
sauf is recorded at frequency rank #661, classified as anadj, pronounced \sof\. sum is at rank #30,825, tagged as anoun, pronounced \sum\.
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 31486, this pair ranks #303,504 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of sauf vs sum
Shared letters: su. Private to "sauf": af. Private to "sum": m.
"sauf" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "sum" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- sauf ← asuf · safu · sauff · ssauf · suaf
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "sauf" for "sum" ever safe?
In ordinary French text, does "sauf" or "sum" show up more?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "sauf" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "sum" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #303,504 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "sauf" and "sum" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "sum vs suu". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #303,504 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.